Prior to the Denver Nuggets re-signing JaVale McGee to a hefty contract and the Dwight Howard blockbuster trade which netted Denver All-Star Andre Iguodala, the Nuggets had reiterated how important it was to bring back Ty Lawson as he was the fundamental building block of the team. However, plans seemed to change as Denver made power moves this summer, but did they forget about Lawson?

Lawson was *A* key ingredient, if not THE ingredient to Denver’s success last season, specifically in the post season, in which Denver was able to force a Game 7. I’ve stated for the longest time as soon as Lawson “figures it out” he will play at an all-star caliber.By “it” I refer to Lawson understanding how productive of a player he is in the realm of his speed, offensive and aggressiveness, nothing will hold him back.

He has steadily improved as a Nugget, in his second season in the NBA, he averaged 11.7 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game while playing 26.3 minutes. This year? Lawson is averaging 16.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 6.6 assists while playing 34.8 minutes.

He was a dynamo in the 7-game series against the Los Angeles Lakers as well as leading Denver in points, (19.6), and assists,(6), and he also averaged 1.3 steals per game this season in addition to shooting 48.8% from the field.

Coach George Karl ingrained into Lawson’s head that he needs him to be more than a facilitator, Denver needed an aggressive Lawson and when he’s aggressive, Denver wins.

Lawson becomes a restricted free agent in 2013-2014 and while he is a restricted free agent, next year’s class is deeper than this year’s. Many teams will be vying for Lawson’s services and many teams with more cap space than Denver.

While it may seem like Denver has put Lawson on the back-burner, the truth is the Nuggets know how vital Lawson is to the team. I expect we hear news about Lawson’s new deal before All-Star break.